Cleveland Cavaliers sign Andrew Bogut, lose him indefinitely

It’s hard to make this stuff up. The Cleveland Cavaliers signed Andrew Bogut off the free agent market and then immediately lost him to a fractured tibia. When I say immediately, I mean that in the truest sense of the word as Bogut was injured just one minute into his first game with Cleveland.

The signing of Bogut was the second big move that the Cavaliers made on the buyout market as they previously added Deron Williams to play point guard. Bogut was expected to shore up the Cavaliers defense which had been waning this season and he also had the added bonus of really irritating his form team in the Finals. Potentially at least. Now? It’s a question as to whether or not he will be back.

”It’s very deflating. It’s a tough moment. We were all excited about the acquisition and bringing him here and him getting some games under his belt before the playoffs. Hopefully, we can hope for the best when he gets the MRI or whatever the case may be. It’s a tough one, obviously for him first of all, and then for our ballclub.”

It’s hard to feel to sorry for the Cavaliers on this one though. The buyout market is the definition of the rich teams getting richer as players who are bought out often find themselves going to the best team out there in a search for a championship ring. Bogut probably could’ve played more minutes in Boston or started for another team, but he decided to go to the team that was most likely to go to the Finals. It’s hard to blame the player for doing that, that’s what any of us would do, but I am not about to feel sorry for the Cavaliers. They are rich enough.

The Cavaliers looked vulnerable for a certain period of time this year and many thought that one of the Celtics/Raptors/Wizards would make a move on them for the top seed in the East, but they seemed to have figured things out and should hold onto that slot. They are still a -325 favorite to win the East. They are still the team to beat.

But there are cracks. The defense has looked terrible, they are 20th in defensive rating and that is something that could come back to haunt them in the playoffs. Lebron James is playing way too many minutes right now and you have to wonder if he’ll have enough gas in the tank to take it to the next level as he did in the Finals last year. There are real questions here.

They are more “Finals questions” than “Eastern Conference questions” though. The loss of Andrew Bogut stinks, but the Cavs won’t change a bit because of it. They’ve lost J.R. Smith and Kevin Love to injury already and are still the best team in the East. The Cavs survive.

The addition of Bogut was like getting a TV that is three inches bigger. It’s great, you love it; but if someone secretly swapped it out for the old smaller one? You probably wouldn’t even notice.